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Pratt said the group wasn’t interested in waiting to discover Rehberg’s plans. "We certainly don't have any problem with him, but he hasn't indicated what he's going to do. Early bird gets the worm."

Rehberg's office has dodged the question about the congressman's 2012 plans, saying only that "Denny is focused on doing the job the overwhelming majority of Montana voters sent him to Washington to do.”

The GOA endorsed 50 successful House, Senate and gubernatorial candidates during the 2010 cycle, conducting robocalls and making "in kind" contributions for a handful of candidates. The organization has differentiated itself from the National Rifle Association by criticizing the larger group for "selling out" the gun rights movement.

In their endorsements, both the GOA and CWPAC devoted most of their statements to targeting the first-term Tester. The GOA sliced the senator for voting to confirm "radical anti-gun U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder" and supporting the DISCLOSE Act, while CWPAC cited Tester's 17 percent rating with the American Conservative Union.

In spite of the difficult political environment for Democrats, Tester has maintained a solid approval rating in Montana, according to a recent poll released by Public Policy Polling. In hypothetical early snapshots, Tester led Daines by 11 points but trailed Rehberg by 2.

Readers' Comments (5)

And they say conservatives don't smoke illegal substances. Dennis Reberg doesn't stand a chance, and I would suggest the only person deciding whether or not John Tester will stay home in 2012, is John Tester. He's well liked, serves his constitutants well, and is not an insider. You may take great pains to tag him this or that all the way from Washington DC but Montanans like him and they do not like slick operatives or writers shilling for the same, telling them who they should vote for. Look at Ron Paul's results at the same time Sen Tester was running. Alaskans claim to be independent of Washington DC; we just say if you can vote here keep your mouth shut.

And they say conservatives don't smoke illegal substances. Dennis Reberg doesn't stand a chance, and I would suggest the only person deciding whether or not John Tester will stay home in 2012, is John Tester. He's well liked, serves his constitutants well, and is not an insider. You may take great pains to tag him this or that all the way from Washington DC but Montanans like him and they do not like slick operatives or writers shilling for the same, telling them who they should vote for. Look at Ron Paul's results at the same time Sen Tester was running. Alaskans claim to be independent of Washington DC; we just say if you can vote here keep your mouth shut.

And they say conservatives don't smoke illegal substances. Dennis Reberg doesn't stand a chance, and I would suggest the only person deciding whether or not John Tester will stay home in 2012, is John Tester. He's well liked, serves his constitutants well, and is not an insider. You may take great pains to tag him this or that all the way from Washington DC but Montanans like him and they do not like slick operatives or writers shilling for the same, telling them who they should vote for. Look at Ron Paul's results at the same time Sen Tester was running. Alaskans claim to be independent of Washington DC; we just say if you can vote here keep your mouth shut.